One in five people in Germany live alone
Every fifth person in Germany lives alone, according to the Federal Statistical Office. The proportion of 20.3 percent is significantly higher than the EU average of 16.1 percent, as statisticians announced in Wiesbaden on Tuesday. Older people over 65 years old are particularly likely to live alone.
In the five northern and northeastern European countries of Finland (25.8 percent), Lithuania (24.6 percent), Sweden (24.1 percent), Denmark (23.5 percent), and Estonia (21.5 percent), more people lived alone in comparison to the EU.
However, the opposite is true in Slovakia, where only 3.8 percent of the population live alone in their household. In Cyprus, it's 8 percent, and in Ireland, it's 8.3 percent.
The proportion of single-person households increased in almost all countries over the ten-year period from 2013 to 2023. The EU average rose from 14.2 percent to 16.1 percent. While there were particularly strong increases in Bulgaria, Lithuania, and Finland, the proportion in Germany remained constant.
On average, 31.6 percent of older people over 65 in the EU lived alone, and this was also above average in Germany with 34.6 percent. In Lithuania, even more than half - 51 percent - of the older population lived alone.
Everyone across Europe, including Germany, has seen an increase in the proportion of single-person households over the past decade. The Federal Office of Statistics in Germany reported that statistical analyses show that Germany, specifically, has a high rate of human beings living alone, with 20.3% of the population.
